by Kathryn Erskine
Caitlin is a 5th grader with Asperger’s syndrome. She likes things in black and white, has trouble making friends and coping with things in her every day life, like recess and group work, but she is also a very talented artist and an excellent reader. Her brother Devon was killed in a school shooting and Caitlin and her father are forced to move on without him. Caitlin’s mother had died of cancer several years before. Caitlin’s pursuit of closure for her and for her father becomes a love project.
I completely loved this book. Caitlin’s voice is consistent throughout the story (“I Look At The Person”) and she was funny and sweet and brilliant. Her family’s loss is completely unfathomable and suffering the loss of a child while continuing to raise a child like Caitlin made her father a special hero to me. I loved the parallels with To Kill a Mockingbird, one of my all-time favorite books. I also loved how the message of empathy was carried throughout the book and how it applied to many characters in many situations throughout the story, not just to Caitlin.
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